Wednesday Bird Droppings: Where this was supposed to be the last day without Orioles baseball

Good morning, Birdland!

As we all remain in limbo regarding the future of professional baseball and society at large I have discovered a few different ways to get my baseball fix. I thought it would be nice to share them here, and if any of you have additional options feel free to share them in the comments.

OK then, here we go:

1. If you have been around Camden Chat for a while, then the name Sung Min Kim may ring a bell. He wrote for the site a few years ago, and has since been featured all over the internet, including FanGraphs, The Athletic and Deadspin. Nowadays, he is working for the KBO’s Lotte Giants, and he recently announced that the club will be live streaming some of their scrimmages on YouTube. As an added bonus you may get a glimpse of former O’s legend Dan Straily, who currently suits up for the Giants. At a minimum, you should follow Sung-Min on Twitter.
2. There are a lot of candidates for “best baseball video game ever” and one of the nominees is certainly Backyard Baseball 2001, which featured none other than Cal Ripken Jr. on the cover. If you agree, then you are in the luck. The guys over at Cespedes Family BBQ are going to be streaming the game on their Twitch channel multiple times per week until MLB baseball is back, including tonight.
3. This one is kind of a tough sell for O’s fans, but if you care to relive any moments from the 2018 and 2019 season and post-season you can do so over at MLB.tv for no cost. The MLB overlords have made streaming of any game from the last two seasons completely free. All you have to do is login or make an account. This may be the best option for those of us that like to use baseball as background noise. Just slap on a random game and get some chores done.

What else can be do to stay in baseball-viewing shape?

Links & Notes

Big Mike had a big year in 2019 - Steve Melewski
It will be interesting to see how this extended layoff impacts not only big league players, but the minor leaguers fighting their way up the organizational ladder. Michael Baumann was one player that took significant steps forward in 2019, and could be in position to make his Baltimore debut sometime in 2020 if all goes well. An abbreviated season likely pushes that debut to 2021.

Extension Candidates: AL East - MLB Trade Rumors
This post only mentions Trey Mancini and John Means as potential extension candidates for the O’s, but stops short of saying that the club should seriously consider such a move. For me, there is no one on the team’s current roster that warrants an extension at this time. Mancini is a good hitter but possesses a skill set that tends to age poorly. Means looked good as a rookie, but his peripheral stats are worrying. Don’t expect any extension talks with an Orioles player any time soon.

Broadcaster Geoff Arnold is eager to bring his voice to the Orioles’ 2020 season - Baltimore Baseball
Whenever the baseball season actually gets underway, the Orioles will be featuring a whole bunch of different voices and faces on their broadcasts. Geoff Arnold is one of those voices and he, fittingly, is a homegrown product from the organization’s minor league system.

Orioles birthdays and history

Is it your birthday? Happy birthday!

Just one former Orioles player was born on this day. Woodie Held (b. 1932, d. 2009) played in 82 games with the O’s between 1966 and ‘67. The utilityman slashed .187/.301/.301 and accumulated 0.4 bWAR during his time in the Charm City.

Also celebrating a birthday is Lee Mazzilli, who served as the Orioles manager from 2004 until August 4, 2005. He led the O’s to an impressive 42-30 record to begin the 2005 season, but then they struggled mightily, leading to his firing. Mazzilli turns 65 today.

Other famous people born on this day include musician Elton John (b. 1947), actress Sarah Jessica Parker (b. 1965), basketball player Sheryl Swoopes (b. 1971) and race car driver Danica Patrick (b. 1982).

According to Baseball Reference, nothing else of note in Orioles history has occurred on March 25th. So, here some other baseball events that have taken place on this date:

1985 - An Illinois judge rules that the laws prohibiting the Chicago Cubs from hosting night games at Wrigley Field are constitutional.

1999 - 40-year-old Orel Hershiser signs a one-year contract with the New York Mets. He would go on toss 179 innings over 32 starts for the Mets, accumulating a 4.58 ERA.

2001 - Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Randy Johnson accidentally kills a dove with a 95 mph fastball. (Other places on the internet indicate that this actually happened on March 24, but we are going based on BR)